PCA applies for affiliation

Mr. Peter Rebello, the Secretary of
the newly founded Panjim Chess Academy,
has formally applied for affiliation to the
Goa State Chess Association. Their
proposal will be taken up for consideration
at the next Executive Body meeting of
the Association to be held on the 10th of
August.

The list of members of the Academy are
as follows -

1. Tony Dias (President)
2. Peter Rebello (Secretary)
3. Edward Jorge (Treasurer)
4. Sanjay Dempo
5. Shaikh Sattar
6. Guilly Rebello
7. Sanchita Thali
8. Damodar Thali
9. Archangel Pinheiro
10. Neil Braganza Cortez
11. Raju Naik
12. Roque Fernandes

PCA has expressed its intent to conduct various
tournaments in Panjim as well as coaching classes
for upcoming players. They have also tied up with
sponsors for their annual budget, it is reliably
understood.

Anyone interested in joining the Academy can contact
Mr. Rebello (98224 80077), Mr. Dias (98202 95397)
or Mr. Jorge (98224 87722).

Golden day for Goa

Reigning National Junior Girls Champion
and Woman FIDE Master Bhakti Kulkarni
created history by becoming the first Goan
to win Gold medals at four levels when she
won the Gold medal in the World Schools
Girls Under 17 Chess Championships in
Singapore. This was one of many medals
for the Goans who stole the limelight by
going to the podium not less than seven times.

Monginis brand ambassador Bhakti, who is
presently studying in Chowgule College, had
won the Asian Under 14 Girls in Teheran
in 2006, the Commonwealth Under 18 Girls
in Mumbai in 2006, the National Junior (under 20)
Girls in 2007 and now the World Schools Girls
Under 17 title. Her coach Dronacharya awardee
Raghunandan Gokhale hailed the 16 year old's unique
feat and proudly declared that she will 'surely become
Goa's first Woman Grandmaster in the days
to come'. Bhakti drew her last round with FIDE
Master Mohamed Ibrahim Khouri of the U.A.E.
to finish with 5.5 points ahead of Woman FIDE
Master Cheng Li Toh of Singapore and Angelique
Hattingh of South Africa.

Double World Under 8 Girls Champion Ivana Furtado
added yet another Gold medal to her burgeoning
collection when she beat Clarice Yeoh of Singapore
to finish with 8 points. In the process the Dempo
Goodwill Ambassador edged out archrival two time
National Champion C.H. Meghna of Kerala
who finished second with 7.5 points. Dita Karenza of
Indonesia finished third in the Girls Under 9 section.

Asian Under 11 Gold Medallist Cyrus Perreira won his
second International medal when he secured third place
with a draw against Dastan Batuhan of Turkey. He also
bagged the Team Silver medal for India with 19.5 points
behind Turkey (20 points) and ahead of Singapore (17.5
points) in the Boys Under 11 Section.


Anirudh Bhat also added to the Goan medal kitty
with a Bronze medal when he beat Ryan Ow of
Singapore to finish with 6.5 points in the Boys
Under 9 Section. He thus becomes the second
Goan boy (after Cyrus Perreira) to win a medal at
the International level. He also helped the Indian
squad to win the Team Gold medal with 20.5 points
edging out Singapore (18.5 points) and Indonesia
(17.5 points).

Finally, Pranav Zantye won the Team Silver medal
in the Under 13 boys section when the Indian team
amassed 16 points. Singapore, the hosts, won Gold
here with 17 points and Turkey with 15 points bagged
the Bronze medal in the category.

Goa State Chess Association President Sameer
A. Salgaocar congratulated the Goan players for
their stellar performance. 'Considering there were
participants from Russia, Ukraine, China, Armenia
and Israel which are the traditional powerhouses of
chess, this is indeed a commendable performance
by the Goan contingent', he added.

Goans shine in Mangalore chess tourney

Goan players put up a commendable
performance in the Second Mangalore
FIDE Rating Chess Championships
to win not less than four prizes in a
tightly contested field of 270 players.

The star of the show was Goa State Champion
Anurag Mhamal (ELO 2113) who finished
fifteenth in the prize list with eight out of a
possible eleven points. He defeated former
National 'B' Champ Nassir Wajih (ELO 2271)
and reputed coach International Master
Varughese Koshy (ELO 2283) in the
process. For his stellar show, Anurag will
be gaining 30 ELO rating points.

In the Veterans section, it was Goa State
Chess Association founder member and
present Joint Secretary P.P. Insulkar who
bagged the first prize. In the Under 11 Boys
section, the second prize went to Mohanan
Harikrishnan and in the Under 15 Girls section
Sukanya Chari bagged the second prize.

Ivana beats Meghna to take the sole lead!

Double World Under 8 Girls Champion Ivana
Furtado defeated archrival and National Under 9
Girls Champion C.H. Meghna of Kerala to
move into the sole lead with 4 points at the
end of the fourth round of the World Schools
Chess Championship being played in
Singapore. There are seven players who are
trailing Ivana with 3 points each and the event
could be still described as wide open.

In the Girls Under 9 section, the much awaited
clash between top seeded Ivana and second
seeded Meghna ended in a decisive victory for
the former. Whereas Ivana has two World Crowns
to her credit, Meghna has won two National
Championships. With this victory, Ivana will
reinforce the psychological edge that she has
over Meghna before they once again clash in
the World Youth Chess Championships to be
played in Vietnam in October. Dempo Goodwill
Ambassador Ivana next plays Dharsha Raja Jawahar
of Singapore in the 5th round.

National Junior Girls Champion Bhakti Kulkarni
was held to a draw by unfancied Zayed Ali Ahmed
of the U.A.E. The Woman FIDE Master and Monginis
Brand Ambassador will have to score heavily in the
remaining rounds for a podium finish in the Girls Under
17 section. Asian Schools Under 11 Gold Medallist Cyrus
Perriera beat Samuel Liu of Singapore to move into
the third spot with 3.5 points. He next faces top
seeded Colombian Candidate Master Joshua Ruiz in
the 5th round and if he wins this encounter he will
surely fancy his chances of winning the event!

In other action in the fourth round featuring Goan
players, Pranav Zantye defeated Aaron Tan of
Singapore to go to 3 points in the Under 13 section.
In the Under 9 section, Anirudh Bhat defeated
Jonathan Tay of Singapore to move into the second
spot with three and a half points.Both these kids
who are playing in an international tournament for
the very first time have a bright chance to finish among
the medals with 5 rounds to go in the event.

Ivana wins Silver, Bhakti wins Bronze in Iran!

(Photo - National Junior Girls Champion
Bhakti Kulkarni in action in Iran)

Double Under 8 World Girls Champion
Ivana Furtado added yet another feather
in her cap by winning the Silver medal
in the Under 10 Girls section of the Asian
Youth Chess Championships which concluded
in Teheran, Iran today. Woman FIDE Master
and Chowgule College student Bhakti Kulkarni
also added a Bronze to the Goan kitty. Interestingly,
showing remarkable consistency, both the Goan
wondergirls have won a medal at the Asian level for
four years consecutively since New Delhi in
the year 2005!

The Dempo Goodwill Brand Ambassador Ivana
beat Iranian player Alijanzadeh Mohadeseh
in the final round to finish with six and a
half points. M. Mahalakshmi finished with
eight points for the Gold medal and G.K.
Monnisha bagged the bronze with six points.
Her coach Dronacharya awardee Raghunandan
Gokhale praised her 'fighting spirit and sheer
determination' while winning this medal.

Goa's Riya Sawant was unlucky to finish
fourth in the Girls Under 8 Section. She lost
her last round match to her Vietnamese
opponent Vu Thie Dieu Uyen and finished
just out of the medals tally. A draw in the last
round would have ensured her a Bronze medal.
Indian Tejaswini Sagar bagged the Silver medal
in this section behind Zhansaya Abdumalik of
Kazhakastan.

National Junior Girls Champion and Monginis
Brand Ambassador Bhakti Kulkarni was lucky to
finish third when she edged out Pon. N. Krithika
on a tiebreak to win the Bronze Medal in the Girls
Under 16 Section. Perhaps it was the strain of
playing her third tournament in a row which did not
allow her to perform upto expectations.

Ivana, who was recenlty awarded the Gulab award for the
best Sportsperson, will now travel to Singapore for
the World Schools Chess Championships. She
will be joined there by fellow Goans - Pranav
Zantye, Cyrus Perreira, Anirudh Bhat and Bhakti
Kulkarni.

Bhakti gains three ELO points in Benasque

Name BHAKTI Kulkarni
Title WFM
Starting rank 167
Rating national 0
Rating international 2166
Ratingperformance 2166
FIDE rtg +/- 3,0
Points 6
Rank 135
Federation IND
Ident-Number 0
Fide-ID 5019516



Rd. SNo Name RtgI RtgN FED Club/City Pts. Res. we w-we K rtg+/-
1 440 PALACIN CASAMAYOR Angel 1684 1631 ESP Ara 4,5 s 1 0,89 0,11 15 1,65
2 24 IM EDOUARD Romain 2508 0 FRA 8,0 w ½ 0,12 0,38 15 5,70
3 75 FM LANGROCK Hannes 2398 0 GER 6,0 s 0 0,21 -0,21 15 -3,15
4 311 GARCIA SAN MARTIN Alberto 1946 1841 ESP Eus 4,5 w 1 0,78 0,22 15 3,30
5 536 ORTIZ AMENOS Jose Luis 2043 2118 ESP Cat 5,0 s ½ 0,67 -0,17 15 -2,55
6 295 SALTERAIN GONZALEZ Galder 1966 1927 ESP Eus 4,5 w 1 0,76 0,24 15 3,60
7 78 SWAPNIL S Dhopade 2389 0 IND 6,5 w 0 0,22 -0,22 15 -3,30
8 253 DEVANGI Patankar 2028 0 IND 5,5 s 0 0,69 -0,69 15 -10,35
9 297 RIVAS CRESPO Alexander 1961 1964 ESP Can 4,5 w 1 0,76 0,24 15 3,60
10 262 PES MATEO Angel 2016 2039 ESP Ara 5,0 s 1 0,70 0,30 15 4,50

Riya, Ivana and Bhakti to play in Iran

Three Goan girls will be part of
the Indian team which participates
in the Asian Youth Chess Championships
which take place from the 15th of July
till the 22nd of July in Teheran, Iran.
Whereas Riya Sawant will be playing
her very first international event in the Under
8 Girls section, double World Under 8
Girls Champion Ivana Furtado will be
participating in the Under 10 Girls category.
Dempo Goodwill Ambassador Ivana had won
the Gold medal in the Under 8 Girls section
last year in Al Ain, U.A.E.

National Junior Girls Champion and the
Monginis Brand Ambassador Woman FIDE
Master Bhakti Kulkarni will be competing in the Under 16
Girls section in which she had won the Silver
medal last year in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Bhakti considers Teheran 'lucky' as she won
Goa's first Gold medal in an international event
in the Under 14 Girls section at the same venue
in 2006. Dronacharya awardee Raghunandan Gokhale
who coaches all the three youngsters will be
present with them throughout the duration of
the event in Teheran. He is confident of them putting
up a good display and returning with glory and
medals for Goa.

GSCA hails Dempo!

Goa State Chess Association hailed
Mr. Srinivas Dempo for naming Double
Under 8 Girls World Champion Ivana
Furtado as Goodwill Ambassador. 'Ivana is
a truly deserving candidate and she will
make proper use of the faith reposed in
her by the Dempo group' announced her
coach Dronacharya awardee Raghunandan
Gokhale. Ivana's next tournaments include
the Asian Youth Chess Championships in
Teheran and the World Schools Chess
Championships in Singapore.

GSCA President Salgaocar hoped that
'more corporates will come forward to
support upcoming Goan chess players'.
In the recent past, besides Dempo
group, Monginis and Borax Morarji have
supported the efforts of the young
developing stars. Hopefully, 'the trend
will continue as our players will
continue to make a mark on the national
and international scene', he added.
'We have other youngsters like Asian
Schools Under 11 Gold Medallist Cyrus
Perreira and State Champion Anurag Mhammal
who could also use some financial support,'
Salgaocar mentioned.

Ivana and Harikrishnan reign supreme

(Photo - Ivana receiving the trophy from the Chief
Guest Mr. Naidu - G.M., Goa Shipyard Limited)

Double World Under 8 Girls Champion Ivana
Furtado added yet another feather in her cap
by winning in grand style the Goa State Under 11
Girls Championship and scoring a perfect 6 points
out of 6 rounds in the hotly contested tourney
which concluded at Vasco Da Gama today. The strength
of the competition can be judged from the fact that
the top three finishers in the Girls section and the
top two in the Boys section all finished in the top 10
of National Championships in the last one year.

Ivana defeated Gauri Hadkonkar and Varshita
Reddy in the 5th and 6th rounds respectively
and the fact that she won with a round to spare
shows that she has the confidence now to go on to
win even more laurels for Goa and India. Her coach
Dronacharya awardee Raghunandan Gokhale is
confident that she will give an excellent
showing in the upcoming Asian Youth Chess
Championships which are getting underway in
Teheran, Iran later this month.

In the Boys section, it was Mohanan Harikrishnan
who took the honours. This young lad who finished
4th in the National Under 9 Championships in
Bangalore last year put in another good performance.
Second place went to Anirudh Bhat who had won the
State Under 9 Championship in Margao and had also
finished sixth in the National Under 9 Championships
in New Delhi earlier this year. Asian Schools Under
11 Champion Cyrus Perreira had to remain content with
third place though he did manage to beat the winner
in the last round.

AICF Vice President Salgaocar praised Vasco Da Gama
Chess Club for having conducted the tournament in
a smooth fashion. It is understood that there will
be many more chess events to be conducted in Vasco
city in the latter half of the year. Mr. Naidu,
General Manager (Finance) of Goa Shipyard Limited,
was the Chief Guest and gave away the prizes.

The top four boys and girls will represent Goa in
the upcoming National Under 11 Championships which
get underway in Ahmedabad next month.

Standings: Girls - Ivana Furtado-1, Gauri Hadkonkar - 2,
Riya Sawant - 3, Varshita Reddy -4, Vidula Dempo - 5.

Boys - Harikrishnan Mohanan - 1, Anirudh Bhat - 2,
Cyrus Pereira - 3, Saeesh Bandodkar - 4,
Vipul Kulkarni -5

Borax Morarji announces sponsorship for Bhakti

(Photo -Bhakti playing in Benasque, Spain)

Monginis Brand Ambassador Bhakti Kulkarni
received another boost to her chess career
when M/s Borax Morarji announced a
scholarship of Rupees One Lakh towards
her foreign travel. If Bhakti performs well during
the next few months, then this amount would be
enhanced substantially, it is understood.

National Junior Girls Champion Bhakti is presently
playing in Benasque, Spain. She drew with French
International Master Romain Edouard (ELO 2508)
in the second round. In a long drawn out ending
where Bhakti had the white pieces, she managed a
draw with perpetual check. This is the highest rated
player against which she has had an even result.
The Woman FIDE Master plays German FIDE Master
Hannes Langrock (ELO 2398) in the third round later today.

Bhakti's next tournaments include the Asian Youth
in Teheran, the World Schools in Singapore, the National
Women's 'A' Championship in New Delhi and
the World Youth Championships in Vietnam.
Her coach Dronacharya awardee Raghunandan Gokhale
has expressed satisfaction with her progress.